Oakland University’s New Med School To Open Soon

ROCHESTER (WWJ) – In one week, the first medical school to open in Michigan since 1964 will begin classes. It’s the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine.

Founding dean Robert Folberg is convinced the new med school will not only create jobs, it will help Michigan hang on to the next generation. “For that 30 percent of our class coming in from out of state, we’ve designed a curriculum to get our students integrated into the community with the expectation that they’re going to like it so much here that they’re going to stay here. So we can actually reverse the brain drain,” says Folberg. And he adds that 61 percent of physicians who do a residency end up practicing within 100 miles of that hospital.

Folberg says more than 3000 students applied to the school – 50 were accepted. He says the first class went through a unique “holistic review.”

“This means that we screen our applicants not only on the basis of their academic achievements, but also on the experiences and the attributes that they bring to the practice of medicine,” says Folberg.

It’s estimated that the Beaumont School of Medicine will pump a billion dollars into the local economy every year once it’s running at full capacity.